Okonkwo Masculinity

Within Ibo culture, masculinity was highly praised whilst femininity was scorned, and being a feminine man was one of the worst things you could be, especially in the eyes of Okonkwo. He perceived his father to be weak and womanly so he modeled his life after being the opposite of his father. And he forced this mindset onto his son as well. These toxic ideas of masculinity ultimately backfired, forcing Nwoye away from his father's culture. Nwoye's response to the missionaries and decision to join their church is a direct result of his father's unhealthy attitudes about how Nwoye should be and how he should act.

tribe to be a week of peace Okonkwo beat up his third wife because she

In the novel Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo’s shame for his father, Unoka, motivates him to be everything his father wasn’t. As a result, Okonkwo hides behind masculinity and conceals his emotions, in hope of escaping weakness. Stubborn and impulsive, Okonkwo makes rash decisions to uphold his reputation, which affects his tribe and his family. Okonkwo’s constant fear of resembling his father takes over his ability compromise and causes him to suffer from depression, the “loss” of his son, the loss of

In the novel Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo is portrayed as a respected and determined individual whose fatal flaw eventually works against him. Throughout the novel the readers are shown that Okonkwo has many of these Characteristics because he is obsessed with the idea of becoming just like his father. This becomes his flaw in the novel that puts him into exile and makes it hard for him to adjust to the changes that were made with in his village.

According to Achebe, the main character detested his father at a very young age, “Even as a little boy he had resented his father’s failure and weakness, and even now he still remembered how he had suffered when a playmate had told him that his father was agbala.”(28) The Igbo tribe in Things Fall Apart uses the term an “agbala” which is used to describe “woman”. Okonkwo considered his father to be weak, effeminate, poor, disgraceful, and always in debt to his fellow tribes people. Okonkwo’s life revolves around the deep fear of becoming a failure and adopting the image of his father. Due to this self rooted perception of failure there are indications that he tries to rise above his father’s legacy.

The Igbo people are one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa, they emphasize on personal achievements, and taking titles which means leadership and respect (Ohadike Don C., p. xxvi-xxvii). In the book Things Fall Apart, the main character, Okonkwo is affected by the influences of the Igbo society and vows to become a man of the highest title and to gain respect from all the lands. Okonkwo and his family live in male dominant society where men are superior to women, therefore, Okonkwo thinks he is the owner of his household, and constantly beats his three wives and children. Okonkwo develops arrogant characteristics and a fear of being weak from the traditions of the society, and throughout the book he puts up a hard exterior and beats

Among the people of this society, the condition of weakness is strongly associated with the state of being female. The worst insult that a man can receive is to be called a woman. The novel's main character, Okonkwo, is often obsessed with proving his strength as a man because he seeks to escape the reputation of his father who was considered by his fellow

Things Fall Apart, written by Chinua Achebe, depicts the life of a clansman of Umuofia, known as Okonkwo. Okonkwo was one of the wealthiest and respected men of his tribe. He gained respect as a great wrestler in his clan, and worked to surpass his father, Unoka’s image, which had been sullied by unpaid debts, and his work-shy attitude. Unoka was no man to Okonkwo, for Unoka had not taken any titles in his clan, therefore, he was nothing more than a woman in Okonkwo’s eyes. In such a patriarchal society being called a woman was disgraceful, and Okonkwo wanted nothing to do with anything womanly, and in turn he wanted nothing of his father, including any traits he carried, righteous or not. Okonkwo’s twisted view of masculinity and lack of compassion creates high expectations. When Okonkwo begins to see that his clan, family, and he himself cannot reach his expectations of strength, he will have nothing the turn to, but the noose that fate has made for him. The Igbo proverb “The thought that led a man to truncate his own existence was not conceived in a day” applies to Okonkwo’s suicide, which had begun with his twisted ideology of masculinity. The thoughts that led Okonkwo to commit suicide originate within his perception of weakness tied to his father; he sees this weakness in his son, in his tribe, and in himself. Okonkwo is disappointed in his son Nwoye for becoming so much like Unoka, he is ashamed of his clan for conforming to the views of the Christians, and he is

Historically, women have been viewed as inferior to men due to a female's lack of physical strength. In the candid novel, Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe clearly defines gender roles; women are the caretakers and cooks- simply existing to satisfy men’s desires. Although “Things Fall Apart portrays the women as weak ,inferior, and being put in their place by men; however, Achebe also notes their importance during several parts of the story. By incorporating powerful dialogues and scenes to develop gender conflicts, Achebe uses the completely divergent character of Okonkwo, who constantly strives to achieve manliness to demonstrate that although women in the Igbo society are important, they are not treated as such. Chinua Achebe, the author suggests that there is a constant conflict which exists between the two genders and the expectations of the roles in which each of them must play.

The novel Things Fall Apart took place in the Igbo Society-the part of the world that has very strict views on gender roles, but not just gender roles. It is likely that every individual in the Igbo society viewed or defined masculinity differently. To some, masculinity was expressed through anger and violence; to others, masculinity was expressed through a man’s responsibility. These different views on masculinity can create conflicts and can therefore impact individual's life. In the novel Things Fall Apart, Okonkwo and Obierika different interpretations of masculinity led them to a different life and such intention was successfully introduced through Achebe’s uses of foil characters.

Through his characters and storytelling in the novel Things Fall Apart, Achebe is attempting to convey how a culture’s ideals of masculinity is for inept and powerful that it controls them by putting limits on someone’s thoughts and actions such as creating relationships (Finish Thesis after review) After the Christian missionaries arrive in Umuofia, they immediately begin to evangelize the locals. One method they used to captivate the tribesmen was to sing hymns. “Then the missionaries burst into song. It was one of those gay and rollicking tunes of evangelism which had the power of plucking at silent and dusty chords in the heart of an Ibo man” (146).

When the word “MAN” is used, most people think it means strong, fearless, hardcore, and so on, but there is more to a man. In Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe it can clearly be observed that there is more to Okonkwo than he shows. Although Okonkwo is perceived as “The Fearless Man”, he does fear. Okonkwo has a fear of being weak. Because Okonkwo has a conflicted personality, “The Fearless Man” in him tends to overshadow the other sides of Okonkwo.

In the novel novel Things Fall Apart, the author, Chinua Achebe, wants the character Okonkwo to be viewed as a highly masculine and strict brute. Throughout the novel there are glimpses of the harsh qualities that Okonkwo possesses that start to break. When Okonkwo is exiled to his mother's tribe, he noticed the vast differences between the two. He noticed how feminine and cowardice their actions are, so he starts to easy up and gets a little sense of when to be how he is usually and when to be how the people in his mother's tribe are. Although he starts making changes to how he is as a person, he quickly realizes how weak it makes him look and how weak his mother's tribe is. When the Christians started moving into his mother's tribe, the people of the tribe wanted discuss or compromise with them, but Okonkwo had other ideas. When talking to the council Okonkwo says, “ Let us not reason like cowards… If a man comes into my hut and defecates on the floor, what do I do? Do I shut my eyes? No! I take a stick and break his head” (158). This quote shows how the author wants

Okonkwo’s downfall in Things Fall Apart, was greatly in hand due to the influence to which his foil, Uchendu, had upon him. Throughout his childhood, Okonkwo was raised by his lethargic father, Unoka, who had little social status due to his lack of contribution to the clan of Umuofia. Okonkwo on the other hand, who had rose to prominence in Igbo society, had done so through fighting and imposing a strict family code to which all members adhered to. He displays fury yet apathy to his family and dominated with an iron fist in an effort to preserve the high status of his household. This hamartia of his would later be addressed to him by Uchendu, his uncle, in Part Two of the book.

     In ‘’Things Fall Apart’’ the main character Okonkwo is driven by fear. Fear is  an unpleasant emotion caused by a feeling that something or someone is dangerous. Fear does not run by itself, it causes many other emotions to occur. It can cause anxiety, insecurities, and it may also cause your body to go into shock. These are some of the emotions that took over Okonkwo’s mind as things continued to fall apart . In the beginning of ‘’Things Fall Apart’’ Okonkwo is very boastful. He likes to show off his accomplishments and the authority he has. Nwoye is an everyday reminder of what a man is not supposed to be. This leads Okonkwo’s fear to resurface once again. When Ikemefuna began to live with Okonkwo it seemed as if he kept their family together. Okonkwo was being less harsh on Nwoye. It seemed like Ikemefuna was the missing piece of the family. He made Nwoye see things through Okonkwo’s eyes. Nwoye became more ‘’manly’’and  this pleased Okonkwo. Being an authoritative man by fear,heart and being a warrior by person can somehow